1.cdn.edl.io Web viewThroughout the years as a mariner, Conrad traveled to various remote and primitive places such as the West Indies, Australia, and Africa

Heart of Darkness RRSTitle: Heart of Darkness

Author: Joseph Conrad

Publication Date: February, 1899

Nationality: British/Polish

Author’s Birth/Death Dates: December 3rd, 1857 / August 3rd, 1924

Distinguishing Traits of the Author: Joseph Conrad was a Polish man, living in Russia, who wrote in English. He was born as Józef Teodor Konrad Korzeniowski on December 3, 1857 in Berdichev, Ukraine but was raised and educated in Poland. At the age of 16, Conrad left Poland to travel to Marseilles, France, a port city where he began his seafaring career as a mariner. Throughout the years as a mariner, Conrad traveled to various remote and primitive places such as the West Indies, Australia, and Africa. Conrad took his seafaring experiences from the places he traveled as inspiration for his literary works, such as his most recognized yet controversial novella of Heart of Darkness. Conrad often writes about nautical settings. His works usually involve modest protagonists in a cold and unsympathetic worlds. Conrad’s stories portray the different aspects of a world ruled by Europeans and explores the depths of human soul and morality.

Setting:Brussels

● Marlow arrives in Brussels, which “always makes [him] think of a whited sepulcher. Prejudice no doubt. [He] had no difficulty in finding the company’s offices. It was the biggest thing in the town, and everybody [he] met was full of it. They were going to run an oversea empire, and make no end of coin by trade.” “A narrow and deserted street in deep shadow, high houses, innumerable windows with venetian blinds, a dead silence, grass sprouting between the stones, imposing carriage archways right and left, immense double doors standing ponderously ajar” (7).

● Marlow meets “two women, one fat and the other slim,” when he enters the company building. “The slim one got up and walked straight at me- still knitting with downcast eyes- and only just as [Marlow] began to think of getting out of her way, as you would for a somnambulist, stood still, and looked up.” Though there are only two women present, the two women represent the fates, who are also always knitting. Since this is the beginning of the story, the two women who symbolize the Fates give off a sense of foreboding, for the Fates usually precede a hero’s epic victory or downfall. The two women never actually speak, so they give off a sense of unfriendliness that adds to the multitude of omens, such as the city that looks like a whited sepulcher, or the river that looks like a snake. To further establish the two women’s presence as a sort of warning to

Marlow, the fat woman “glanced at [Marlow] above the glasses,” showing a “swift and indifferent placidity” that troubles Marlow (8). There seems to be something “uncanny and fateful” in the woman’s glance. This is further support for the women’s symbolizing the fates and more foreshadowing for Marlow’s journey into the heart of darkness.

● Marlow also meets the secretary, “five feet six,” and “an impression of pale plumpness in a frock coat” (8). The secretary gives some documents for Marlow to sign, to ensure that he does not “disclose any trade secrets,” and merely gives him a “Bon voyage.” Again, the lack of dialogue between Marlow and the secretary illustrate the cold nature of the world, a common component in a lot of Conrad’s works.

● Marlow encounters the doctor, who was “shabby and careless, with inkstains on the sleeves of his jacket, and his cravat was large and billowy, under a chin shaped like the toe of an old boot” (8). The fact that the doctor questions Marlow whether Marlow has any madness in his family continues the long string of foreboding omens that warn Marlow of the dangers and depravity that he will soon encounter. The doctor is a vehicle for introducing the psychological change that occurs to people in the Congo, when he says that the change occurs on the inside of the head, not outside.

● Lastly, Marlow goes and visits his aunt that had helped him acquire his position. The aunt beings to speak of “weaning those ignorant millions from their horrid ways, ‘till, upon my word, she made [Marlow] quite uncomfortable” (10). The aunt represents the common European consensus of imperialism at the time. “White man’s burden” is a common and popular concept that is used to justify resource exploitation on the part of the Europeans, and Marlow’s aunt, who is part of the upper class that makes the decisions to “explore” the Congo and other African countries, harbor discriminations and biases against other fellow human beings that they so degradedly call “savages.” This is the first introduction to the theme of race.

French Steamer● Marlow takes a French steamer to the African continent. He reflects that “watching a

coast as it slips by the ship is like thinking about an enigma. There it is before you- smiling, frowning, inviting, grand, mean, insipid, or savage, and always mute with an air of whispering, Come and find out” (10).

● Marlow sees a French ship “firing into a continent,” with “her ensign dropped limp like a rage; the muzzles of the long six-inch guns stuck out all over the low hull” (11). The fact that the French ship is firing into a continent contributes to the theme and motif of futility. Marlow actually finds “a touch of insanity in the proceeding.” What is the point in wasting shells on the continent? Is there a point in waging a war against a continent?

Swede’s boat● Marlow takes his passage “on a little seagoing steamer,” and the boat’s captain is

“Swede.” There, Marlow hears that there is another “man who hanged himself on the road.” “He was a Swede too.” When Marlow asks the captain why, the captain muses that maybe “the sun was too much for him, or the country perhaps” (12). The fact that someone else had committed suicide is again foreshadowing for the terrible conditions of futility that will plague Marlow at the Congo. Up to this point, increasingly worrisome

signs have warned Marlow about the dangers of this journey, from the doctor in Brussels and now to the death of a Swede who just can’t handle either the “sunshine” or the “country.”

Outer Station● Marlow finds a path once he arrives the outer station. “It turned aside for the boulders,

and also for an undersized railway-truck lying there on its back with its wheels in the air. One was off” (13). Marlow also “avoided a vast artificial hole somebody had been digging on the slope, the purpose of which I found impossible to divine” (13). Marlow finds that “everything else in the station was in a muddle – heads, things, buildings” (13). He also encounters extreme racism at the Outer Station. He finds natives “dying slowly” as “black shadows of disease and starvation, lying confusedly in the greenish gloom” (14).

● Marlow meets the chief accountant here. He is meticulously dressed in “high starched collar, white cuffs, a light alpaca jacket, snowy trousers, a clear necktie, and varnished boots” (15). Marlow mockingly remarks that the chief accountant is a “miracle.” As the chief accountant, the man is extremely efficient at bookkeeping, but at the same time exhibits little sympathy and concern for other people. This can be seen when he remarks that the “groans” of a sick person “distract my attention” (15). Overall he is self-conscious, meticulous, unfeeling, and efficient. His dress reflects the theme of futility, for what is the purpose of wearing such clothes in the primitive station in the Congo?

● Marlow also meets the chain gang here, a group of slaves in chains. He hears a “slight clinking” and sees “six black men” “toiling up the path” (12). He is rather disgusted by the scene and, “instead of going up, [he] turned and descended to the left,” away from the chain gang (13). Marlow, thought also susceptible to the general racism at the time, feels uncomfortable with extreme racisms and bigotry. Being one of adventurous spirit and plentiful, colorful experiences, Marlow is more naturally inclined to be open-minded, and therefore less-inclined to believe wholeheartedly in slavery and other imperialism-associated beliefs.

● Marlow also sees the dying natives who are “nothing but black shadows of disease and starvation, lying confusedly in the greenish gloom” (14). He even sees a native with “black bones reclined at full length with one shoulder against the tree, and slowly the eyelids rose and the sunken eyes looked up at me, enormous and vacant.” Marlow feels more sympathetic towards these natives than the other Europeans at the Outer Station, for he hands the aforementioned natives with the sunken eyes a piece of bread. Perhaps it is the fact that Marlow has only just arrived at the Congo, and haven’t had time to grow accustomed to such terrible conditions that plague the natives on a daily basis.

200-Mile Trek● Marlow spares relatively little description to this portion of the trip, telling the people on

the Nellie that there is “no use telling you much about that. Paths paths, everywhere; a stamped-in network of paths spreading over the empty land, through long grass, through burnt grass, through thickets, down and up chilly ravines, up and down stony hills ablaze with heat; and a solitude, a solitude, nobody, not a hut” (16). The lack of a specific

description illustrates that these naturistic, overgrown features of the jungle are with them everywhere they go, for the entire two hundred miles. This contributes to the immensity of the forest and later, the descriptions that portray a living forest.

● Marlow sees “the body of a middle-aged Negro, with a bullethole in the forehead, upon which I absolutely stumbled three miles farther on” (17). Here, Marlow exhibits racism when he states that seeing an African shot with a bullet in the head is a permanent improvement to the permanent scenery that they have encountered for miles. The fact that just a random African shot dead can be found in the jungle illustrates just how hostile the jungle is to this new civilizing crusade.

● Marlow also encounters a “white companion, too, not a bad chap, but rather too fleshy and with the exasperating habit of fainting on the hot hillsides, miles away from the least bit of shade and water” (17). This particular character has one significant line in the novel: “To make money, of course.” Conrad includes this character to show that despite being physically unfit to even survive in the short-run in the jungle, the man still insists on taking the trek for the sake of making money off any ivory stores he can get his hands on. This situation illustrates the true intentions of the European’s presence, as well as the greed of the Europeans.

Central Station● The Central Station “was on a back water surrounded by scrub and forest, with a pretty

border of smelly mud on one side, and on the three others enclosed by a crazy fence of rushes. A neglected gap was all the gate it had, and the first glance at the place was enough to let you see the flabby devil was running that show. White men with long staves in their hands appeared languidly from amongst the buildings, strolling up to take a look at me, and then retired out of sight somewhere” (17).

● Marlow meets the manager here. The manager is ordinary in appearance and nature, except for the fact that he inspires “uneasiness” in Marlow and in others, inspiring “neither love nor fear, nor even respect” (18). Marlow reflects that the manager always has something not quite of a smile when he is conversing with others. Having been raised in the Congo, the manager has risen to the position he is in currently because he has great health and never falls ill. Marlow immediately grows “savage” upon meeting him, the manager being an unaccommodating host to Marlow, who has traveled on foot for 200 miles, and a rather despicable character. The manager is fearful that Kurtz will replace him as the manager and treats him with disdain. Marlow suspects the manager of sabotaging Marlow’s ship before Marlow arrived at the central station. When Marlow shows his support of Kurtz, the manager also brands Marlow as a traitor and treats him coldly.

● Marlow also meets the brickmaker here. The brickmaker is “a first-class agent, young, gentlemanly, a bit reserved, with a forked little beard and a hooked nose” (20). The man is the manager’s spy, possessing information about Marlow that only the manager would know. He tries to butter up Marlow in an attempt to gain good favors, falsely believing that Marlow is someone who has much influence high up in the Company’s command. Marlow initially finds the man surprising to have mistaken him as someone in the Company; Marlow quickly grows amused at the man’s mistake. He finally becomes

annoyed with the man’s constant bothersome presence. The brickmaker’s futile job as well as his role as the manager’s spy illustrate both the fact that no one can be trusted out here in the COngo, and that work out here is futile.

● Marlow meets one of the only characters he admires here- the “boilermaker by trade- a good worker. He was lank, bony, yellow-faced man, with big intense eyes. His aspect was worried, and his head was as bald as the palm of my hand” (26). Marlow respects him because he is contributory to real work. His inclusion in the story contributes to the motif of efficiency, for he is one of around four characters who are actually working in the story. Marlow likes him for this reason.

● Marlow encountesr the Eldorado Exploring Expedition, and Marlow “believe they were sworn to secrecy. Their talk, however, was the talk of sordid buccaneers: it was reckless without hardihood, greedy without audacity, and cruel without courage; there was not an atom of foresight or of serious intention in the whole batch of them” (27). The Eldorado’s description illustrates that like most companies involved in imperialism, they lack morals, courage, and planning. Marlow thinks of them as a rather lowly bunch, with little positive aspects to spout about. It is also a sad reflection that the company Marlow temporarily works for is simliar to that of the Eldorado’s in that their ultimate goal is ivory.

Going Up the River● Marlow finds that “Going up that river was like traveling back to the earliest beginnings of

the world, when vegetation rioted on the earth and the big trees were kings. An empty stream, a great silence, an impenetrable forest. The air warm, thick, heavy, sluggish. There was no joy in the brilliance of sunshine” (25).

● Marlow also finds that “the earth seemed unearthly” because since people “are accustomed to look upon the shackled form of a conquered monster” a thing that is “monstrous and free” is “unearthly, and the men were – No, they were not inhuman” (26).

● Marlow also tramples upon the Russian trader’s tent. “Some fifty miles below the Inner Station, we came upon a hut of reeds, an inclined and melancholy pole, with the unrecognizable tatters of what had been a flag of some sort flying from it, and a neatly stacked wood-pile” (26).

● Marlow takes attention of the cannibals who have not yet eaten him nor his fellow sailors yet. Therefore, he congratulates them as “Fine fellows – cannibals – in their place. They were men one could work with, and I am grateful to them” (35), opening up the discussion to the tremendous restraint it takes cannibals to not eat their European counterparts. Marlow begins to respect the cannibals because they possess restraint is the toughest of challenges: starvation.

● Marlow and company are attacked the natives, who are sent by Kurtz himself (they didn’t know that at the time). During the battle, Marlow’s helmsman is killed during the assault. Marlow throws the body overboard instead of letting the cannibals eat his body, as a gesture of futile respect. Marlow here is beginning to lose some of his sanity, as is implied by his narrative and the fact that he throws his perfectly good shoes overboard.

Inner Station

● Through his glasses Marlow sees “the slope of a hill interspersed with rare trees and perfectly free from undergrowth. A long decaying building on the summit was half buried in the high grass; the large holes in the peaked roof gaped black from afar; the jungle and the woods made a background” (42). He can see “no signs of life, but there was the ruined roof, the long mud wall peeping above the grass, with three little square window-holes, no two of the same size; all this brought within reach of my hand, as it were” (42).

● Upon closer inspection on Kurtz’s house, Marlow is terrified that the “round knobs were not ornamental but symbolic; they were expressive and puzzling, striking and disturbing – food for thought and also for the vultures if there had been any looking down from the sky; but at all events for such ants as were industrious enough to ascend the pole. There would have been even more impressive, those heads on the stakes, if their faces had not been turned to the house” (42).

● Kurtz meets the Russian trader at the Inner Station, who is stupidly loyal to Kurtz despite the fact that Kurtz had threatened to kill him over a small iota of ivory before. Marlow reflects that “he looked like a harlequin. His clothes had been made of some stuff that was brown holland probably, but it was covered with patches all over, with bright patches, blue, red, and yellow, - patches on the back, patches on the front, patches on elbows, on knees, coloured binding around his jacket, scarlet edging at the bottom of his trousers; and the sunshine made him look extremely gay and wonderfully neat withal, because you could see how beautifully all this patching had been done” (45).

● Marlow finally gets to meet the long-awaiting Kurtz, the sole purpose of Marlow’s mission.Kurtz is an extremely efficient trader of ivory. He is highly respected and feared by others in the Congo, especially the manager. Though he starts off as having great ambitions to educate the natives in the Congo, his benevolent wishes deteriorates into a dark desire to have the natives worship him. He takes human offerings from the local natives, who worship him like a God. Marlow finds out the terrible nature of what Kurtz has become when what Marlow has mistaken as “round knobs” are actually “heads on stakes,” “food for thought and also for the vultures if there had been any looking down from the sky” (52). In addition, he also becomes heavily demanding of ivory; when the Russian trader comes across a small stock of ivory, Kurtz threatens to shoot the Russian trader if he doesn’t hand over the ivory. The Kurtz that Marlow meets is twisted, deteriorated, atrophied, and sick, physically and mentally. Despite Marlow’s distaste of what Kurtz has become, he keeps the secret of Kurtz’s mental deterioration to himself, so Kurtz’s Intended never finds out what he has become.

● Marlow also meets Kurtz’s mistress. In contrast to Kurtz’s Intended, Kurtz’s mistress treads “the Earth proudly” and “carries her head high,” exhibiting a proud nature. Though both women are beautiful, Kurtz’s Intended had a fragile beauty about her, while the mistress is “a wild and gorgeous apparition of a woman” (55). Marlow marvels at how Kurtz’s mistress appears “savage and superb, wild-eyed and magnificent” (56). The mistress represents what Kurtz has become in the jungle, someone great and barbaric at the same time. The overall attitude that Kurtz’s mistress exhibits is one of savage brilliance and haughty disdain. This attitude contrasts markedly from the one exhibited by Kurtz’s intended, and the difference contributes to the theme that people change for the worse in the jungle, becoming debased and corrupted.

Brussels Again● Marlow finds himself “back in the sepulchral city resenting the sight of people hurrying

through the streets to filch a little money from each other, to devour their infamous cookery, to gulp their unwholesome beer, to dream their insignificant and silly dreams” (58).

● Three people accost Marlow to find out about Kurtz’s last words and the items that he left to Marlow. A company’s representative, a journalist, and Kurtz's cousin all come and ask for Kurtz’s possessions, and these visits give Marlow insights into Kurtz’s life before he succumbed to the heart of darkness. Kurtz is described as a “universal genius” (65).

● Marlow eventually goes and find Kurtz Intended, or his fiancee. Marlow reflects that Kurtz’s Intended “had a mature capacity for fidelity, for belief, for suffering” (65), suggesting that Kurtz’s fiancee is one that will be loyal to Kurtz even after his death. Kurtz’s Intended hangs on to the Kurtz that she had known, before he has fallen from grace. She insists to Marlow that “It was impossible to know him and not to admire him” (65). Marlow, to spare her the knowledge of what Kurtz has become, lies to her, telling her Kurtz’s last words are her name

Brief Plot Synopsis: The story begins on Marlow’s steamboat, the Nellie. While the crew waits for the

tide to recede, Marlow entertains his crew by telling them about his journey through the Congo. He recounts how he simply wanted to travel to the Congo merely for an adventure and not for wealth or ivory. In order for Marlow to travel through the Congo, he becomes a captain for the Belgian trading company. He is able to obtain the position because of his aunt’s connections to the company. When he arrives in Brussels for this appointment, he meets the doctor who examines Marlow before he leaves for the Congo. The doctor informs him that the people who travel to the Congo, never come back.

Marlow finally embarks on his journey to the Congo when he boards a French steamer that takes him to the Outer Station. As soon as he arrives at the Outer Station, Marlow is exposed to the horrors of Africa. He observes decaying machinery laying everywhere and a gang of chained natives. He also comes across an area of trees with ill and dying natives sitting between the foliage in the shadows. Following these horrifying observations, Marlow meets the station’s chief accountant who is dressed in civilized clothing and tells him who Kurtz is. When Marlow hears about Kurtz, he instantly becomes curious.

After he meets the chief accountant, Marlow leaves the Outer Station to begin the two-hundred-mile tramp towards the Central Station with a caravan of sixty men. During the expedition, one of the men who weighed 224 pounds kept fainting due to the extreme weather conditions and thus he delays the trip. Marlow becomes agitated and asks the man for his reason being in Africa. The man replies that he is only in the Congo to make money and become wealthy.

After fifteen days of traveling on land, Marlow and his caravan finally reach the Central Station. He immediately learns that his steamboat has been suddenly sunked and thus it will take him three months to repair the ship. Following this revelation, he

meets the manager of the Central Station and his spy, the brickmaker who tells him more about Kurtz. Marlow further becomes fascinated and interested by Kurtz. It is revealed that the brickmaker dislikes Kurtz because he is ruining his chance of becoming the assistant manager. Marlow discovers that his boat was sunk to delay his mission to retrieve Kurtz as the brickmaker was hoping that Kurtz would be dead by the time they retrieve him. During the time that Marlow repairs his ship, he overhears a conversation between the manager and his uncle. They both fear that there is a possibility that Kurtz will take over the station and that they wanted to hang a wandering trader who has been stealing ivory.

Marlow’s boat is finally repaired, and along with the manager and a crew that consisted of natives and pilgrims, they all head for the Inner Station to retrieve Kurtz. During their journey, Marlow becomes intrigued by the cannibals onboard his ship. He admires their ability to have self-restraint against hunger and further becomes fascinated when he sees that they have more restraint than the pilgrims on the ship. When the ship is eight miles from the Inner Station, the steamboat suddenly becomes attacked by the natives from the bushes on the riverbank. The fight abruptly ends when Marlow sounded off the steamboat’s whistle repeatedly which scared away the natives. Unfortunately, the helmsman is the only one who got killed in the fight and Marlow throws his body overboard.

The crew finally reaches the Inner Station and they are greeted by the Russian trader who is revealed to be the wandering trader that the manager wanted to kill. The Russian trader informs Marlow how Kurtz has “enlarged [his] mind”(50) but subsequently tells him that he has become deranged and barbaric. He tells Marlow of Kurtz’s occasional ivory hunts with the natives and how he has managed to obtain a group of natives to worship and follow him. Marlow instantly sees how the Congo has corrupted and changed Kurtz and thus takes him back to civilization to treat his illness. However, on the way back to the station, the steamer breaks down and Kurtz dies after he gives Marlow his papers.

After the long and gruesome journey through the Congo, Marlow returns back to the “white sepulchral”(7) city. He is greeted by three men who attempt to retrieve the papers that Kurtz gave to him. Marlow then goes to finally meet Kurtz’s Intended to give her the rest of the letters he had. The Intended is still in mourning even though it has been a year since Kurtz’s death. She tells Marlow how great and respectable of man Kurtz was and that no one knew him as well as she did. Marlow realizes how naive she is and lies to her that Kurtz’s last words was her name. The novella ends with the anonymous narrator observing the dark and somber sky.

Characters

Marlow: Marlow is the protagonist of the novella who merely traveled to the Congo for an adventure and not for wealth or ivory as “he was a seaman, but...a wanderer too”(3). He is a sailor on The Nellie, and the novel is about his recounting his journey to the Congo. Marlow

is different from the other sailors on The Nellie in that while other sailors find “nothing mysterious” “unless it be the sea itself,” Marlow finds meaning “not inside like a kernel but outside, enveloping the tale which brought it out only as a glow brings out a haze” (3). Marlow is slightly less racists than the other imperialists in the Congo, in that he admires the cannibals he comes in contact with for their restraint. In fact, he claims that they are “almost human,” a radical notion at the time. Marlow hates lies and admires efficiency, reflected through his respect for the chief accountant and his initial fascination with Kurtz. He is portrayed “like a Buddha,” to highlight his spiritual understanding of men’s heart of darkness.

Kurtz: Kurtz is the mystery man of the novel. He is the prime goal that Marlow pursues in his journey through the Congo. He is described as more than human throughout the novel. The chief accountant explains how Kurtz “sends in as much ivory as all the other stations put together” (16). The exceptionally high output of ivory from his station raises the mystery of Kurtz. It seems as if his work in producing ivory is super human. The first time Marlow begins to understand Kurtz he picture the image of Kurtz on a “dugout, with four paddling savages, and the lone white man turning his back suddenly on the headquarters” (28). He is pictured as being the lone wolf as he goes the opposite direction of the Europeans. Kurtz is so involved in his work for ivory that he disregards his roots and completely changes direction. The Russian explains that Kurtz “has enlarged [his] mind” (50). Kurtz seems to have some type of magic powers with his voice and words. Despite his godly descriptions, Kurtz still succumbs to the powers of the Congo and the wilderness “had taken him on a terrible vengeance for the fantastic invasion” (53). Even a man as strong as Kurtz is overwhelmed by the power of the Congo. He is unable to hold back his restraint and enters a scene of terror to retrieve ivory. Kurtz’ extreme change is due to his ability to “believe anything” because “he had the faith” (67). He is described as an extremist that became one of the natives. His last words were “the horror! The horror!” (64). He went to the Congo believing that he would be able to change and civilize the natives. However, he succumbs to the force of the Congo and becomes one of the natives instead. His last words show how he experienced the darkness of man’s heart and saw the true evil of the world. Overall, Kurtz is the prime example of how the Congo degrades and corrupts the Europeans.

Fresleven: Fresleven is the previous captain of the steamship that Marlow replaces. He is described as the “gentlest, quietest creature that ever walked on two legs” (6). However, his time in the Congo changes him and he “started to hammer the chief of the village with a stick” because he thought he was cheated in a deal (6). The sudden change from softness to mindless violence shows the power of the Congo. His purpose of a character is to highlight how the Congo changes men.

The manager: After arriving at the Central Station, Marlow meets the manager and describes him to be “commonplace in complexion, in feature, in manners, and in voice [as] he was of middle size and of ordinary build [with] eyes of the usual blue [that] were perhaps remarkably cold, and he certainly could make his glance fall on one as trenchant and heavy as an axe”(18). However, the most distinctive quality about the

manager was the way he “inspired uneasiness”(18).The fact that the manager “inspires uneasiness” accentuates the authority and dominance Europeans exert over the natives of the Congo. This intimidating quality shows how Europeans wanted to exert complete control over the country and its people. Although the man “had no learning, and no intelligence”(18) Marlow discovers that he only obtained the position because of his immunity to the diseases in the Congo. Marlow immediately grows “savage” upon meeting him, the manager being an unaccommodating host to Marlow, who has traveled on foot for 200 miles, and a rather despicable character. The manager is fearful that Kurtz will replace him as the manager and treats him with disdain. Marlow suspects the manager of sabotaging Marlow’s ship before Marlow arrived at the central station. When Marlow shows his support of Kurtz, the manager also brands Marlow as a traitor and treats him coldly.

Chief accountant: The physical appearance of the chief accountant portrays a traditional and typical representation of an imperialistic and civilized European. Marlow describes that the man had a “high starched collar, white cuffs, a light alpaca jacket, snowy trousers, a clear necktie, and varnished boots”(15) with parted hair that was “brushed, oiled, under a green-lined parasol held in a big white hand”(14). His appearance is so civilized and sophisticated that he is compared to a “hairdresser’s dummy”(14). The chief accountant also appears to be an organized and diligent man because he “was devoted to his books, which were in apple-pie order”(15). His pretentious demeanor and wardrobe symbolize the typical imperialistic attitude and goals of Europeans. The fact that the man seems unaffected by the Congo as he maintains his appearance illustrates the superiority that the Europeans believe they have over the Congo. His appearance is also perceived as intimidating as he wants the natives of the country to feel inferior by the domineering presence of the Europeans. As the chief accountant, the man is extremely efficient at bookkeeping, but at the same time exhibits little sympathy and concern for other people. This can be seen when he remarks that the “groans” of a sick person “distract my attention” (15). Overall he is self-conscious, meticulous, unfeeling, and efficient.

Brickmaker- The brickmaker is a man who does not make bricks at all. The brickmaker sees Marlow as another bringer of light, but this man is a “papier-mâché Mephistopheles, and it seemed to me that if [Marlow] tried to poke [his] forefinger through him, and would find nothing inside but loose dirt, maybe” (76). He was a spy for the manager, but Marlow needed him in order to get rivets.

Russian trader: As soon as Marlow arrives at the Inner Station, he meets the Russian trader, the wandering trader who was mentioned in the conversation between the manager and his uncle. He is described as a “harlequin” with clothes that was covered in “bright patches, blue, red, and yellow”(48). The Russian trader is Kurtz’s travel companion and loyal acquaintance. He appears cheerful most of the time, and admires Kurtz for the way he has gotten the natives to worship him. Though the Russian trader is loyal, having taken care of Kurtz every time that he has fallen ill, he is rather mindless, being one not prone to deep thought and

reflection. Marlow observes that the Russian trader’s “devotion to Kurtz” “came to him, and he accepted it with a sort of eager fatalism” (50). Marlow reflects that the trader might not actually like the answer when he finds out about Kurtz’s true character. In the end, the Russian trader also exhibits his nature to easily detach from others, when he leaves immediately after hearing that the manager is looking to kill him, abandoning Kurtz with not much emotion.

Cannibals: The cannibals help Marlow navigate through the river by pushing the steamship through tough areas. They bring rotten hippo meat to eat, but it quickly runs out. Despite their incessant hunger, they show restraint and do not eat the largely outnumbered white men on the ship. Marlow admires their restraint and contrasts their self-control with the unrestrained nature of the Europeans. He explains that it takes “a man all his inborn strength to fight hunger properly” (38). The cannibals who seem uncivilized and animalistic are able to cultivate the strength to restrain from hunger. However, Europeans who are considered civilized and intelligent cannot even restrain from greed.

Pilgrims: Marlow calls some of the Europeans “pilgrims” because of their appearance of spreading the white-man’s-burden to the natives. They are greedy and concerned only about making a profit from the ivory of the Belgian Congo. When Marlow leaves on his two-hundred mile tramp, he meets his white companion who is one of the pilgrims. When asked why he is at the Congo he replies “To make money, of course. What do you think” (17). To the man, the only reason that the Congo even exists is so that he can take up its resources and make money. Furthermore, the title “pilgrims” stress the out of place nature that the Europeans have in the Congo. They are like foreigners that do not belong in a hostile country.

Kurtz’s mistress: When Marlow departs from the Inner Station with Kurtz onboard, he sees Kurtz’s native mistress on the riverbank whose composure and appearance depicted her to be “savage and superb, wild-eyed and magnificent; [but] there was something ominous and stately in her deliberate progress”(56) as she “walked with measured steps, draped in striped and fringed cloths, treading the earth proudly, with a slight jingle and flash of barbarous ornaments”(56). Kurtz’s mistress is the only woman in the book who Marlow describes with positivity and equity. Furthermore, by characterizing her to be “savage and superb, wild-eyed and magnificent”(56) with a “face [that] had a tragic and fierce aspect of wild sorrow and of dumb pain mingled with the fear of some struggling, half-shaped resolve”(56) it indicates that Marlow respects the woman for her strength and ability to let go of Kurtz and to deal with the brutality of the Europeans.

Kurtz’s Intended: Marlow visits Kurtz’s Intended to give her his papers. When he visited her, “she came forward, all in black, with a pale head, floating towards [him]in the dusk...[and] the room seemed to have grown darker, as if all the sad light of the cloudy evening had taken refuge on her forehead”(68).The Intended has been mourning for Kurtz for a year and continues to devote herself to him by praising his greatness and legacy. However, she is realistically naive as she only praises his mission to enlighten

and civilize natives that Kurtz attempted to pursue and not comprehend that the Congo was the reason for his downfall and demise.Kurtz’s Intended ultimately embodies naivety and outlines Marlow’s belief that “it’s queer how out of touch with truth women are [as] they live in a world of their own”(10). Furthermore, the Intended’s inability to recognize the realistic reason for her husband’s death reinforces the idea of how women are too oblivious and innocent to understand the atrocious realities that exist in the world.

Marlow’s aunt: Marlow’s aunt reveals the sexist attitude Conrad has towards women. Furthermore, when she talked about “weaning those ignorant millions from their horrid ways”(10) it implies how women are ignorant and naive as they are not fully aware of the atrocious realities that exist in the world, such as the way the Congo corrupts the mentalities of civilized Europeans. This is evident when Marlow expresses how “it’s queer how out of touch with truth women are [as] they live in a world of their own, and there has never been anything like it, and never can be”(10). However Marlow also asserts that it is suggested that women should not involve themselves in a man’s world as they will not be prepared or be able to face the atrocities of reality. Marlow indicates that it is better for women to be protected from such evils that exist in the world.

Symbols

Painting: While at the Central Station, Marlow encounters an oil sketch done by Kurtz while he was still at the Central Station, featuring a “woman, draped and blindfolded, carrying a lighted torch.” Marlow feels uneasy, for the “movement of the woman” is “stately,” but the “effect of the torchlight on the face” is “sinister” (22). The woman carrying the torch represents Europeans attempting to educate their imperial subjects. The fact that the woman is “blindfolded” parallels how the Europeans have no idea what they are doing. The torch represents the pretense that Europeans are coming to Africa to educate the savages about civilization. Lastly, the “sinister” effect of the light on the woman’s face shows how imperialism is corrupting the Europeans into something that is twisted and ominous.

Ivory: The ivory essentially symbolizes the European’s desire for glory, power and wealth and the degradation of man. The symbolic representation of ivory is evident in Kurtz as Conrad portrays ivory as a possessive force. Conrad discloses how the ivory had “caressed him...taken him, loved him, embraced him, got into his veins, consumed his flesh, and sealed his soul to its own by inconceivable ceremonies of some devilish initiation”(44). Overall, ivory embodies the corruption and deterioration of the Europeans as they become poisoned by the desire for wealth and power.

Fog/Mist: Mist is used throughout the novel to add to the darkness that obscures the mind of man. When Marlow is going up the river on his French steamer, there is “a white fog, very warm and clammy, and more blinding than the night” (35). As fog and mist conceals the atmosphere and distorts the sight of individuals, it symbolizes how the aspects of imperialism misconstrue the mentality and morality of Europeans. Furthermore, because of the ivory trade which promotes the desire for power and wealth, the Europeans are thus unable to see the ugly truth of the horrors of imperialism. In other

words, because power and wealth are embedded in the minds of Europeans, they are thus unable to realize how the Congo is altering their civilized mentality.

The River: The Congo River is a symbol of the evil that exists in the darkness of a man’s heart as well as the living, breathing entity that is the Congo. When Marlow is exploring a map, he notices “a mighty big river… resembling an immense snake uncoiled” (6). Marlow seems to be bewitched by the river. Furthermore, a snake represents a sly evilness that is apparent in men. As Marlow journeys deeper into the Congo, he discovers the selfish, profit-driven mindset of men that are unable to restrain themselves. The snake description also represents the force of the jungle. Marlow explains that the “snake had charmed” him (6). Marlow is captivated by the snake and the mysterious power that it holds.

Motifs

Work: Marlow strongly admires work ethic because work allows “the chance to find yourself. Your own reality--for yourself, not for others--what no other man can ever know. They can only see the mereshow, and never can tell what it really means”(25). Furthermore, he believes that there is a deeper meaning to work than just working to earn money and become prosperous. He essentially believes that work allows people to discover themselves by committing themselves to a purpose or goal. If individuals put their whole heart into working towards a goal, they are able to obtain a better grasp of understanding themselves and how much they can retain their self-restraint.

Light and Dark: The motif of light and dark is present throughout the novel, as can be expected with the novel title of “Heart of Darkness.” When Marlow first sees the oil sketch done by Kurtz, he reflects that the painting’s “effect of the torchlight on the [painted woman’s] face was sinister” (22). The light here resembles civilization, and the sinister shadows on the face symbolize the distortion of European values in the face of imperialism. References to light resemble civilization from the European perspective, while references to the darkness refers to the untamed lives of the “savages.” Darkness also can symbolize the influence of the jungle on men’s hearts. Once Marlow finds out what Kurtz has become, he begins to questions “how many powers of darkness claimed [Kurtz] for their own” (44). Kurtz’s lack of restraint in becoming someone dark and immoral begins to pique Marlow’s curiosity about what greater forces have laid a claim after Kurtz’s death. When Marlow is trying not to tell Kurtz’s Intended about what Kurtz has become, the room is “growing darker,” while only Kurtz’s Intended’s “forehead, smooth and white, remained illumined by the inextinguishable light of belief and love” (69). The light of belief and love in what Kurtz was and not what Kurtz has become contrasts with Marlow’s knowledge of Kurtz, which is why there is also darkness in the room.

Jungle: The motif of portraying the jungle as a living entity is present throughout the novel. When the manager’s uncle extends “his short flipper of an arm for a gesture that took in the forest, the creek, the mud, the river,” Marlow immediately expects “an answer of some sort to that black display of confidence” from the forest (29). The forest is immediately portrayed here as something that has the ability and power to respond to the unfounded arrogance of Europeans.While Marlow is driving the steamboat, he feels that the forest is a “stillness of an

implacable force brooding over an inscrutable intention” (30). The word “implacable” suggests that the forest is something that will not budge, something that cannot be moved. In addition, the word “inscrutable” suggests that the forest is something that cannot be discerned, as if everything in the forest is a living mystery, pulsating with life but unwilling to shed any secrets. Lastly, the forest is described as a living thing when Marlow states that Kurtz was the jungle’s “favorite,” and that the jungle has “claimed him” completely (48). The jungle is portrayed as a living entity in all instances to illustrate that the jungle is ready to reclaim the forest when the Europeans leave, and that something sinister is waiting in the wings, ready to take over any hint of civilization established in the Congo.

Efficiency: There is a motif of efficiency throughout the book. First, in the Central Station, Marlow

mentions how the brickmayer is waiting on a certain equipment that will not come from Europe, and Marlow reflects that “”it did not appear clear to [him] what [the brickmaker] is waiting for” (21). The fact that the man’s sole function cannot be carried and will not be carried out in any foreseeable future illustrate a lack of efficiency. In contrast, earlier in the novel, Marlow calls the chief accountant a “miracle” and “respected the fellow” because he is the only person accomplishing anything in the outer station (15). Lastly, Marlow begins to have a fascination with Mr. Kurtz, who seems to have performed his task with “great pluck and efficiency” (28) at obtaining ivory. There’s a trend with Marlow; he respects those who work with high efficiency and dislikes those who do not work, such as the brickmaker and the pilgrims. The motif of efficiency and the lack of efficiency contrasts markedly with the motif of futility to show how despite certain efficient parts of the machine that is European imperialism, the effort in general is still futile.

Futility: The motif of futility is prominent in Heart of Darkness. Marlow first sees futility when he observes the French boat “firing into a continent” with its gun, on his way to the Outer Station, without accomplishing anything (16). At the Outer Station, he finds an “artificial hole somebody had been digging on the slope, the purpose of which I found impossible to divine” (23). There a hole lays, in the middle of nowhere, with no apparent, visible purpose and possessing a futile existence. The randomness of the occurrence also contributes to the futility of work expended in digging the hole. Lastly, Marlow’s entire trip is futile, for the Kurtz eventually dies on the boat, crying out, “The Horror! The Horror!” in his dying breath (62). The entire purpose of the trip is to find Kurtz, only to have Kurtz die right as they reach him. The motif of futility is developed overall to support the fact that imperialism, an effort to claim the wild and educate the savage, is a process that will not occur due to its futility.

Woman: There is a subtle motif of women in the book, especially when it comes to Kurtz’s women. Kurtz’s Intended, or his fiance, is an extremely dedicated, loving woman to Kurtz. She possesses “the mature capacity for fidelity, for belief, for suffering,” and Marlow realizes that “for her [Kurtz] had only died yesterday” (69). The Intended gushes over Kurtz and worships him, believing in the idealistic Kurtz before the Congo had claimed him. She is desperate for any

consolation from her solitude and pain, and she hangs on to everything Marlow has to say about Kurtz. She reflects Kurtz’s burning idealism and pure nature before the Congo. She is humble, fragile, desolate, pained, and pitiful. The overall attitude that Kurtz’s Intended exhibits is one of homely innocence and unwavering inspiration and devotion. This attitude reflects Kurtz’s mentality and constitution prior to his corruption. In contrast to Kurtz’s Intended, Kurtz’s mistress treads “the Earth proudly” and “carries her head high,” exhibiting a proud nature. Though both women are beautiful, Kurtz’s Intended had a fragile beauty about her, while the mistress is “a wild and gorgeous apparition of a woman” (55). Marlow marvels at how Kurtz’s mistress appears “savage and superb, wild-eyed and magnificent” (56). The mistress represents what Kurtz has become in the jungle, someone great and barbaric at the same time. The overall attitude that Kurtz’s mistress exhibits is one of savage brilliance and haughty disdain. This attitude contrasts markedly from the one exhibited by Kurtz’s intended, and the difference contributes to the theme that people change for the worse in the jungle, becoming debased and corrupted.

Restraint: Conrad uses the motif of restraint to comment on the inherent selfishness of man. When the cannibals are starving, they outnumber the white men on the boat thirty to five. However, they restrain themselves from eating the men because they have restraint. Marlow explains how it takes a man all his inborn strength to fight hunger properly” (38). The cannibals who eat their fellow humans, who are uncivilized, and who are slaved have more restraint than the civilized Europeans that are destroying the Belgian Congo. Furthermore, the cannibals are restraining from giving into hunger, a basis of survival. The Europeans are failing to restrain from greed, a far less daunting force. Kurtz entered the Congo an honorable, strong man with the intentions of civilizing the natives. Instead, he became a “soul that knew no restraint, no faith, and no fear” (61). The force of the jungle changes him to a corrupt man blinded with power. He becomes one of the natives.

ArchetypesFog: The fog is an archetype in the novel as the men near the Inner Station. The fog is impossibly thick, allowing very little perception of any life outside their steamboat. It is described as a blanket covering the boat as a “sea, like a ripple on an unfathomable enigma” (100). This obscures the sailors’ vision and leaves them in fear of an impending attack by the natives. This mist or fog is another example of the land and forest's ability to cloak itself from the invaders and give them a dangerous disadvantage. It drives the men mad with fear and tension, as it clouds the physical surroundings but also the little mental stability which they had remaining.

River: The river is another archetype which remains present throughout most of the story. The river is their guide into the jungle; it is the source of life within the Congo, and the only map to find Kurtz. Although the river is a symbol of positivity and it aids the men in their treacherous journey, it is a part of the land which is ultimately the enemy. On the river, “this stillness of life did not resemble peace. It was the stillness of an implacable force brooding over an inscrutable intention” (89). The Congo River is a symbol of the journey and the boundaries which have been laid out before them, but also as a force which has its own life and vengeful attitude.

Allusions

Fates: Marlow describes the two knitting women he meets at the company in Brussels as the mythological Fates. Conrad uses this allusion to demonstrate that the two women are essentially measuring out Marlow’s journey through the Congo’s heart of darkness. Thread is used as an allusion to Greek Mythology and the power of the Fates. The thread is sewed and cut by women to symbolize the life or death destined by a journey. As Marlow finishes his examination, ready to leave to the Congo, he sees two women look at him with a “glance of unconcerned wisdom”. Marlow looks upon them and “thought of these two guarding the door of Darkness, knitting black wool as for a warm pall” (55). The purpose of these women is to create anticipation of the journey to come, and to set forth the eerie and ominous mood. They have this “unconcerned wisdom” just the Fates would in recognizing the life or death of an individual before the journey begins. They are knitting black wool, but as if this were not symbolic enough, it seemed to be for a warm pall, which is the cloth spread over a coffin. The encounter with these women is chilling, as they know the fate which lies ahead.

Mephistopheles: There are also many allusions to biblical references of the devil. Marlow compares the men which accompany him on his travels to devils themselves. When the brick maker is speaking to him, he “let him run on, this paper-mache Mephistopheles” (76). The reference of Mephistopheles is evil spirit, who conspires to convince a man to sell him his soul. Although not referenced literally, he describes the man as a devilish fiend nonetheless. Marlow also address the devil once again when he is speaking of morality and restraint, he claims “I take it no fool ever made a bargain for his soul with the devil: the fool is too much of a fool and the devil is too much of a devil” (110). He ridicules men for their foolishness and the devil for his treachery. The allusions to devils and selling souls only further the idea that the Congo is in a hellish place.The allusion to Mephistopheles is evident when Marlow refers to the brickmaker as Mephistopheles (23) or in other words, Satan because of his devious and malicious demeanor.

Themes

1) Lack of restraint can cause the deterioration of one’s morals and ideals.Restraint is one of the primary themes in the novel. Marlow first encounters it when a

Negro has supposedly set part of the steam on fire. All the pilgrims joined in on beating him up, and none exhibited any moderation or restraint in their violence. Marlow, thought he does not explicitly express his sympathy, includes this hurt Negro in his narrative several times to highlight the fact of how hurt he is from the constant, relentless beating of the Europeans. Marlow also finds a lack of restraint in the brickmayer, the manager’s spy, who continues to no end to butter Marlow in an attempt to acquire some good favors as well as some information from those in higher offices in the Company. Marlow is surprised and amused at the lack of inhibition that the brickmaker exhibits in his company, spilling the secret fact that he is the manager’s spy. Marlow is ultimately annoyed by the fellow.

Marlow begins to admire restraint as a serious quality when he finds that other people possess more of this quality than the civilized Europeans do. When the cannibals on his ship

need food and tell Marlow to go get some natives and bring them back, Marlow admires the fact that these cannibals have not yet eaten them. Compared to the European companions on board, these cannibals exhibit serious restraint in the worst of challenges in Marlow’s opinion: hunger. What is supposedly an inferior race possesses a trait that Europeans lack, changing Marlow’s view about restraint in general as well as the two races. In contrast, the pilgrims have no restraint, always constantly talking about money and ivory in Marlow’s presence, as if that is their object of worship, hence the name “pilgrims.” Marlow finds that in the Congo, what is supposed civilized company exhibit little inhibition and let their darkest, wildest, most debased desires run free, whereas other races are rationally holding back the darkness at bay.

Marlow is ultimately disgusted by the European’s failure to practice restraint in the Congo. When he goes and fetches Kurtz, Kurtz tries to return to the calling darkness of power from the natives, until Marlow has to get him back. Kurtz has entirely succumbed to the Congo’s dark influences. Kurtz, even in his emaciated form, wants to become that deity that all the natives worship and make human sacrifices for. Marlow reflects that Kurtz’s ambitions have gone awry because he lacked restraint to keep his morals instead of gaining power from the natives. In Marlow’s opinion, it takes restraint for a man in solitude to hold up his own morals, when society’s structures have fallen away, and Kurtz lacked that quality.

2) Despite people being from different races and the inherent racism in imperialism, all humans still share certain, fundamental traits. Race is a dominant theme in Heart of Darkness and is expressed through Marlow’s

change of perspective in his journey. To start off with, Marlow is never a big fan of racism. When he visits his aunt in Brussels, and she is telling him to civilize the millions of natives in the Congo, he immediately feels uncomfortable with the conversation and moves to leave his aunt. Though Marlow is also prone to the racism that is so common at the time, he seems to be less bigoted and discriminatory than the general consensus as represented by his aunt. Having an adventurous spirit that travels to different places and exposed to different ideas, Marlow is more open-minded as a person and is therefore less inclined to the ideas of racism. He again demonstrates this aversion to extreme racism when he encounters the chain gang at the Outer Station, and afterwards turned his back on the them. Repulsed by the degradation of human character to this extent, Marlow’s human nature appeals to him to not be a part of such abominations. Thus, though Marlow likely believes in racism in the beginning, he does not partake in racism itself.

Marlow further begins to ponder whether the natives of the Congo are humans after all. At one point, Marlow, though condemning the savages that howl and scream with no sense of what is civil or not, thinks that there is something fundamentally appealing about these natives’ wild calls and habits. Having never considered these natives as humans before, Marlow seems on the verge of expanding the definition of humanity to include them. Though racist by today’s standards, Marlow’s reflections in context of the time period is one that is questioning the foundations of racism and slavery. Marlow later goes as far to state that the cannibals on board with them exhibit more restraint than the Europeans when they refrain from eating them. Impressed by the fact that such “lowly creatures” can tolerate hunger, Marlow begins to wonder what exactly is it that Europeans mentally have superior over these beings. In the wilderness,

the Europeans are exhibiting moral turpitude and lack of restraint, while the natives are exhibiting restraint. Marlow begins to morally search his mind for justifications to racism.

Marlow reaches moral ambiguity about race in his journey, which can be considered as a success for a subtle crusade against slavery. When he reaches Kurtz, he finds that the natives have begun to worship him and offer him human sacrifices. He feels disgusted by what Kurtz has become and just the tiniest bit despondent over these natives who have fallen under Kurtz’s dark charm. Yet as he observes Kurtz’s mistress, Marlow begins to describe the woman as something wild and beautiful, something quite human and in fact powerful. Marlow’s views on race have certainly be altered by his experience in the Congo.

3) The forces of evil are always within an individual, ready to take over one’e soul if one lacks restraint.Evil and the darkness in men’s hearts is one of the biggest themes of the book. Marlow

first finds omens that hint at the darkness he will uncover in Brussels. When he arrives at Brussels, he sees the river he will travel down as a snake. Snakes often have associations with evil, maleficent intent, and betrayal. When he visits the doctor at the company, the doctor begins asking him if there is any signs of madness in his family, and ends the examination with a foreboding remark that the change of the Congo occurs on the inside rather than on the outside of the head. The fact that the doctor would ask such questions seems to suggest that no one in their right minds would sign up voluntarily for a journey like this. Both these omens hint at the darkness Marlow will encounter.

Marlow further witnesses more evil when he arrives at the stations before meeting Kurtz. He immediately sees a chain gang of black men, being escorted by a native turned traitor against his own race. The depravity of the situation has Marlow immediately turning his back on the scene, for men in chains together is one of the more evil images in this novel. Not a big supporter of racism, Marlow finds it repulsing to see such extreme, evil racism in action. He later overhears the manager plotting to kill the Russian trader in the Congo, for there is no law in the Congo. Being a simple-minded person who only wants to explore, Marlow finds the lack of trust and camaraderie disconcerting.

In fact, Marlow grows disgusted, depressed, and overwhelmed by all the evil that he has witnessed. When the Russian trader is about to tell Marlow explicitly that Kurtz takes human sacrifices, Marlow immediately tells the Russian trader to stop telling him immediately. Marlow’s knee-jerk reaction not to hear Kurtz’s “accomplishments” in the station shows a shift in attitude; before Marlow has always been curious, now he is merely fed up. In fact, after Marlow returns from his journey, he states that he becomes physically and emotionally close to death, having seen and heard too much of the darkness of men’s hearts in his journey. Violence/Cruelty: Without discipline or self-restraint, individuals engage in violence and cruelty to achieve what they selfishly want.

As the setting of the book is during the age of imperialism, there are instances of violence and cruelty throughout the novella. The first instance that depicts the unlawful demeanors of Europeans, is the ill and dying natives that were left to suffer at the Outer Station. Significantly, one of the natives, in particular, wore a white worsted thread around his neck. However, Conrad is not expressing pity for the natives. He is realistically asserting how degrading and

uncivilized Europeans have become as a result of living in an unlawful land surrounded by violence and greed. Europeans initially had a mission to civilize the natives, but instead of doing so, they become barbaric themselves in the process as their tactics to civilize the natives deteriorated their civilized demeanors that once existed within them.

With a desire for wealth and power and no self-restraint, Kurtz uses violence to achieve fame and glory. This is evident when he obtains a band of natives to follow and worship him, but severs the heads of rebels who disobey him.The malevolence that exists inside Kurtz further accentuates how the Congo ultimately degrades the morality and sanity of Europeans. Kurtz uses violent tactics to obtain his greedy desires which outlines how the savage environment of the Congo alters the civilized mentalities of the Europeans.

The Europeans are not the only ones who exhibit violence, but the natives as well. This is evident when they attack Marlow’s steamboat to prevent him from taking Kurtz away as they worship him as a godlike being. In the process of attacking the boat, the innocent helmsman dies. By demonstrating violence within the natives, Conrad is trying to convey that the savagery of the natives and the unlawful environment of the Congo are the main reasons why Europeans have become nefarious and violent themselves. In the other words, the author portrays the natives to have no self-restraint themselves and thus it influences the Europeans because they are attempting to discipline them.

2. Nature and experience has the overwhelming power to change the mindset and the overall soul of a man. Kurtz enters the Congo with the mindset of helping the natives through civilization and knowledge. When he is introduced to the power of ivory, he becomes a god to the natives. He begins to accept human sacrifices as he tears through villages to collect ivory. Kurtz changes from an honorable man to an uncivilized savage because of the harshness of the Congo. The jungle is a living, breathing force that changes Kurtz into one of the natives. It attracts him like a magnet to explore and confide in its ancient ways. That power transforms Kurtz and rearranges the pieces that make up his soul. Instead of fulfilling his first goal of civilizing the natives, he deteriorates down a road that leads to his own unraveling. Marlow is an honorable man that detests lies because of the horrible feeling he gets from them. However, after returning from his journey through the heart of darkness, he lies to the Intended about Kurtz’ last words. Through the force of the jungle, Marlow experiences the true harshness and horror of life. Although he spares the Intended out of kindness, he is forced to go against his previous moral against lying. Through his experience of the horrors within man’s heart, Marlow changes his mindset. The entity that is the jungle exposes the unrestrained selfish attitudes of men which results in horrible savages. In order to hide the corruption of her husband, Marlow lies to the Intended. The force of nature can be so strong that it can lead to madness in even the strongest man. When Marlow reaches the mouth of the Congo River, he learns that a Swede captain kills himself while walking the trail of the jungle. A leader, who is supposed to be strong-willed against the toughest opponents, succumbs to the pressure of the Congo. His friend explains

that he is overwhelmed by the weather, or the “country perhaps.” The living force of the crushing environment of the jungle pushes the captain to his limits.

Noteworthy Quotes“It seems to me I am trying to tell you a dream- making a vain attempt, because no relation of a dream can convey the dream-sensation, that commingling of absurdity, surprise, and bewilderment in a tremor of struggling revolt, that notion of being captured by the incredible which is of the very essence of dreams...No, it is impossible; it is impossible to convey the life-sensation of any given epoch of one's existence- that which makes its truth, its meaning- its subtle and penetrating essence. It is impossible. We live, as we dream-alone...” (45)

“ You know I hate, detest, and can’t bear a lie, not because I am straighter than the rest of us, but simply because it appalls me. There is a taint of death, a flavour of mortality in lies— which is exactly what I hate and detest in the world— what I want to forget. It makes me miserable and sick, like biting something rotten would do”(23).

“I don’t like work—no man does—but I like what is in the work— the chance to find yourself. Your own reality—for yourself, not for others—what no other man can ever know. They can only see the mere show, and never can tell what it really means”(25).

“‘The earth seemed unearthly. We are accustomed to look upon the shackled form of a conquered monster, but there— there you could look at a thing monstrous and free. It was unearthly, and the men were—No, they were not inhuman”(32).

“The fascination of the abomination—you know, imagine the growing regrets, the longing to escape, the powerless disgust, the surrender, the hate” (4). “I’ve seen the devil of violence, and the devil of greed, and the devil of hot desire; but, by all the stars! These were strong, lusty, red-eyed devils, that swayed and drove men—men I tell you” (13). “It seems to me I am trying to tell you a dream—making a vain attempt, because no relation of a dream can convey the dream-sensation, that commingling of absurdity, surprise, and bewilderment in a tremor of struggling revolt, that notion of being captured by the incredible which is of the very essence of dreams…” (24). “The wilderness had patted him on the head, and, behold, it was like a ball—an ivory ball; it had caressed him, and –lo!—he had wither; it had taken him, loved him, embraced him, got into his veins, consumed his flesh, and sealed his soul to its own by the inconceivable ceremonies of some devilish initiation” (44). “Exterminate all the brutes!” (46).

“I went no more near the remarkable man who had pronounced a judgment upon the adventures of his soul on this earth” (64).

“He cried in a whisper at some image, at some vision- he cried out twice, a cry that was no more than a breath: ‘The horror! The horror!’” (64)

The horror that Kurtz refers to is what he has become under the influence of the Congo. Kurtz started off as someone who has philanthropic ambitions to civilize and educate the natives. The Kurtz that Marlow meets is someone who clings to his status as a deity among the “savages,” has an affair with the native women, and accepts human sacrifices. It seems that before his death, Kurtz realizes how twisted his ambitions have become, and in his realization he gasps aloud in his horror of self-reflection. These are the final words of Kurtz because it is not until the end, when he is in the presence of European company, that Kurtz is given the chance for self-inspection. Isolation has allowed Kurtz to drift far apart from his objective moral standards, and only when he’s nearing the end of his life that he realizes his sins. His words link to Marlow’s discussion of stepping to the edge, in that Kurtz has gone over the edge of human morality, left humanity in fact, before realizing that he has gone beyond the point of return. Marlow reflects that he himself has stepped to the very edge of humanity in his trip to the Congo, whereas Kurtz’s statement shows how Kurtz realizes he has gone past the edge of humanity.

Distinctive Characteristics of the Work: Conrad structures the novel into the outer frame and the inner frame, with the outer frame being Marlow recounting his story to the people on The Nellie, and the inner frame being the story Marlow is recounting. Conrad does so to develop the idea that man’s heart of darkness is deep within a veneer of civilization. In the outer frame at the beginning of the story, the listeners of Marlow’s story are unaware of men’s heart of darkness. When the narrator reflects upon the glory of England upon the banks of the Thames, Marlow counters that “here [at the Thames], too, is a place of darkness.” The difference between Marlow’s and the narrator’s point of view shows that in the outer frame, no one other than Marlow is aware of men’s heart of darkness. However, in the inner frame, the others soon hear about Marlow’s account of what happens to people in the Congo. Thus, in the inner frame, the heart of darkness is revealed. Just as men’s heart of darkness is hidden within, covered by a mask of civilization, the outer frame of the narrative is also a superficial appearance of glory, while the inner frame reveals men’s true nature. Conrad also uses the alternating inner and outer frame to show how vivid and alive this experience is to Marlow, and how defining this experience is for him.

Narrative Voice: There are main narrators in the novel, Marlow’s and an unidentified narrator’s. They both narrate in first-person.

The unidentified narrator of the story is a fellow sailor on the boat, The Nellie, with Marlow. He is initially very proud of England’s history, for as he stares at the “venerable stream” of the Thames “in the vivid flush of a short day,” he reflects that “all the men of whom the nation is proud” have been on the Thames at one point or another (2). The narrator can be characterized

as patriotic, thoughtful, reflective. He listens attentively to Marlow’s entire story without interrupting, and is able to pinpoint Marlow’s difference from the other sailors with insight, describing him as Buddha-like. Conrad chooses an unidentified narrator to narrate the outside frame in order to shed some light into Marlow’s character. Having someone observe Marlow’s character can provide insight into his character early in the book. There is relatively little bias in the narration, for the narrator is not involved in any of Marlow’s adventures to the heart of darkness, and so he has no reason to lie. The tone of the narrative is pompous at first, bragging about England’s accomplishments at the sea. The tone becomes sobering, as Marlow finishes his story.

Marlow narrates his journey to the Heart of Darkness. Marlow’s character is well-established in the analysis above. The author structures the narrative in an inner-outer-frame structure to parallel Marlow’s journey from the Outer Station into the Inner Station, becoming deeper and deeper immersed in the darkness of the Congo. Marlow’s descriptions of the characters might be slightly biased against those who do not work hard, such as the manager and the brickmaker. On the other hand, Marlow is simple-minded enough that he can be trusted as a narrator. Marlow’s tone is reflective, introspective, and thoughtful, for readers have a clear view of Marlow’s thoughts as well as insightful commentary into the other characters. The tone is also uncertain, showing how traumatic the experience is for Marlow.